Dog bites son.... Now what?

[Evania]

Personally, I would find the dog a new home. It only takes one time to lose everything. The last thing you want is to be sued.

A dog bite is very serious. A woman’s dog got loose, and a little boy was horrifically mauled in my friend’s front yard. It was completely unprovoked. The loss of blood caused him to go into shock. He had a bone exposed and was going in and out of consciousness. It was truly a miracle that he made it. It’s sad for everyone. The boy has to live with his scars, the dog was put down, my friend’s children are terrified of dogs, and the dog owner is financially destroyed.

You can try training, and hopefully it will work. If it doesn’t work, it could prove disastrous. I just urge you to be extremely cautious.

I am a dog owner myself, and am a huge dog lover. I can only imagine how painful this situation is for you.

 

[MJJean]

The dog thinks it’s the alpha obviously. The dog needs to know it’s the runt of the household.

So:

1. Dog (re) training

If that doesn’t work…

1. Adopt out
2. Put down.

First, the alpha theory has been debunked by behavior science. Domestic dogs simply don’t think that way.

Second, if the OP adopts out this dog and it bites again, then OP can be held legally liable for the bite. If the dog is taken to a shelter for adoption it will be temperament tested before being adopted out and likely put down for it’s poor temperament.

Third option is euthanasia and I would vastly prefer this option.

The dog is a danger to the child, random people on the street, and a legal liability to the owners. This is not acceptable. There are too many temperamentally stable dogs dying every day for lack of homes to keep an unstable dog alive. That’s just my personal belief. I’d rather put an unstable dog down and offer a home to a sound dog in need than keep an unstable dog alive.

Let me tell you a story. I took in a rescue dog. He seemed just fine. After 4 years he growled at a kid at the playground. We were concerned and took him home immediately Later that evening, he attacked my son for literally walking by with towels in his hand that he was taking to the laundry.

The result? 12 staples to my boys face, a few other wounds that needed cleaning, 2 weeks on antibiotics, permanent scaring, and one dog taken to the vet to be put down.

Missing having a dog around, I went to the rescues and adopted another dog. had that dog less than a week when it bit a visiting kid. Kid had 2 pencil top eraser sized puncture marks on her arm. We got sued for $30,000 in medical bills because the child’s parents consented to exploratory surgery to see if there was any soft tissue damage…even though the marks were so small and she could move her arm and feel sensation just fine. While the visiting kid was in surgery, I was having that dog euthanized, as well. I can’t fathom why the rescue didn’t warn me in advance, but I later found out the dog had a history of aggression.

I do not play with a dogs life, my kids life, or our financial future. I love dogs more than I even like most humans, but if a dog is a threat to humans I truly believe it must be put down.

Of course, there is the behaviorist option. It’s not cheap and it takes a lot of consistent work over a long period of time on the part of the owners to recondition a dog and even then there is no guarantee of success. And a big part of reconditioning and training as a responsible owner of an aggressive dog is to keep that dog from being within reach of people it could harm unless/until it has been successfully reconditioned and deemed safe by the behaviorist. Each owner has to really be honest with themselves and evaluate their lifestyle and the dogs needs to determine if they are even able to commit to long term work with their dog. Some families can do it, some cannot.

I ended up doing some breeder research, found a lovely breeders ( we own 3 different breeds currently) that breed for health, temperament, and conformation, and currently have 4 dogs that we absolutely adore. Even so, if any one of them showed signs of being willing to lay teeth on a human outside of a real threat to our persons, I would give that dog a good day of hamburgers and affection and then take it right to the vet for the final goodbye.

All of this assuming it is not a correctable medical problem causing the aggression, of course.

 

[MJJean]

Oh, OP, when you took the dog to the vet did they run a full thyroid panel? Sometimes aggression is a sign of a thryoid malfunction and can be corrected with medication.

 

[jritenour]

He’s a small dog. I would see if I could get him some training.

When my son was only a few years old we had a German Shepard/Chow mix. He bit my son above his eye. I had to get rid of him. He was a good dog and only defending his territory. You could tell he felt bad about it (as much as a dog can) but we had to have him picked up. My own son is worth infinitely more than any dog no matter how good the dog it is. It made me sad but I know we made the right decision.

 

[Aelred_Minor]

I’d say the dog needs to be put down. Two bites in a short span of time is too much.

 

[MJJean]

There seems to be a lot of hysterical responses to a 6lb dog.

Calling the police about a menacing 6lb dog ? I’m pretty sure there are laws against making needless calls to the police. And medical and punititve costs from an overgrown mosquito ? You’d have to have a magnifying glass to find anything resembling a wound.

Good grief.

Yeah…no. My ex husbands family is from NC. I allowed my ex-MIL to take my daughter, then 4, to a family reunion in that state. Apparently, Great Aunt S’s 5lb Pomeranian doesn’t like kids. The dog bit my daughter in the face tearing her upper lip from nose down. She still has the scar and she’s 14 now. She’ll be 15 next month. Every time I see that scar I want to smack the snot out of whoever decided it would be a good idea to let a confirmed child hating dog anywhere near kids.

Bottom line, small dogs can cause damage, too. Temperament and behavior standards shouldn’t ever be based on size.

 

[KimberlyCat]

Have you recently changed your dog’s food?
Have you recently had someone new move into the household?
Did the household’s schedule change recently which leaves the dog alone for longer periods of time?
Have you recently started putting your dog into a kennel/crate (huge one) for hours at a time?
Have you recently got a new cat or dog?
Have you or anyone in the household recently changed their cologne or perfume?
Have you recently changed your dog’s shampoo or taken him to a different groomer?
Are you using any new household cleaning products? New carpet powder?
Are you spraying too much air freshener into the air?

You would be AMAZED at how little changes like this can really set off your dog’s behavior. Just something to think about.

Good Luck

 

[Saturn5]

Hi Mega1 -

I’ve been around dogs my entire life (mainly hunting dogs). Dad raised Labs when I was a kid. He had one rule that was never broken, never have a biting dog. We had one that nipped at the neighbor kid once when I was about 10 years old. That dog was gone the next morning.

I’ve owned and trained dogs for the last 15 years, been bitten by dogs…big dogs, little dogs. I don’t like it, big or little. You need to get rid of the dog.

Apologies for the bluntness. You are in my prayers on this decision.

 

[freiabereinsam]

“Accidents” like these are why I have a morbid fear of dogs. I think what your dog did is unacceptable, and the pet has got to go for everyone’s safety. Your son is of far greater importance.

 

[SamH]

Well, my husband says I’m overreacting. He just joked and said “good thing I got the rider on the home owners insurance policy” … Regarding our neighbor who got bit.

I know if I insist the dog goes… That he will freak out and of course our son will be heart broken. I don’t want to break our son’s heart, but this is an inside dog. He’s a little one… So, I can’t just easily separate them. And I’m concerned about what could happen when I’m not home. My husband is not exactly watching him intensely.

What are you going to do if the next person he bites is a 1 year old that he leaves scarred for life?

Every dog should get one bite - the second one is the one you act on.

 

[SamH]

Hi Mega1 -

I’ve been around dogs my entire life (mainly hunting dogs). Dad raised Labs when I was a kid. He had one rule that was never broken, never have a biting dog. We had one that nipped at the neighbor kid once when I was about 10 years old. That dog was gone the next morning.

I’ve owned and trained dogs for the last 15 years, been bitten by dogs…big dogs, little dogs. I don’t like it, big or little. You need to get rid of the dog.

Apologies for the bluntness. You are in my prayers on this decision.

Agreed!!!

 

[freiabereinsam]

There seems to be a lot of hysterical responses to a 6lb dog.

Calling the police about a menacing 6lb dog ? I’m pretty sure there are laws against making needless calls to the police. And medical and punititve costs from an overgrown mosquito ? You’d have to have a magnifying glass to find anything resembling a wound.

Good grief.

What the [censored]? How can you be so cold-hearted? What if the dog bite were to result in an amputation? Some needless call to the police!

As far as I’m concerned, any dog that bites any person should be automatically euthanized. Dogs must know how to behave themselves, and dogs like these present a clear danger to the public safety.

 

[CB_Catholic]

Why are people advocating finding a new home for a dog that has a history of biting people?

What makes anyone think it won’t bite people in the new home? Giving it away won’t solve the biting problem, and puts even more people in danger of being bitten.

And I disagree that a 6 lb. dog can’t cause much damage. If the bite is in the face or head it certainly can, and dog bites are notorious for getting infected.

If a dog is biting without provocation, such as the lady walking down the street, it needs to be put down, not adopted out. And if it bit one of my children, I’d personally take it to the vet to be put down.

 

[Country_Gal]

That’s right about liability if you adopt out and the dog bites again. I had to put a dog down for biting and found that out. It was a good dog with the family but bit a passerby, I was told she had fear aggression, she was a timid and sweet German Shepherd who was trying to protect her territory.

I’m a firm believer in euthanasia for problem dogs.

 

[Evania]

Yeah…no. My ex husbands family is from NC. I allowed my ex-MIL to take my daughter, then 4, to a family reunion in that state. Apparently, Great Aunt S’s 5lb Pomeranian doesn’t like kids. The dog bit my daughter in the face tearing her upper lip from nose down. She still has the scar and she’s 14 now. She’ll be 15 next month. Every time I see that scar I want to smack the snot out of whoever decided it would be a good idea to let a confirmed child hating dog anywhere near kids.

Bottom line, small dogs can cause damage, too. Temperament and behavior standards shouldn’t ever be based on size.

So true!

 

[Evania]

What the [censored]? How can you be so cold-hearted? What if the dog bite were to result in an amputation? Some needless call to the police!

As far as I’m concerned, any dog that bites any person should be automatically euthanized. Dogs must know how to behave themselves, and dogs like these present a clear danger to the public safety.

Ignore the troll.
If you look at his posts, it just serves to incite.

 

[Beryllos]

Have you recently changed your dog’s food?
Have you recently had someone new move into the household?
Did the household’s schedule change recently which leaves the dog alone for longer periods of time?
Have you recently started putting your dog into a kennel/crate (huge one) for hours at a time?
Have you recently got a new cat or dog?
Have you or anyone in the household recently changed their cologne or perfume?
Have you recently changed your dog’s shampoo or taken him to a different groomer?
Are you using any new household cleaning products? New carpet powder?
Are you spraying too much air freshener into the air?

You would be AMAZED at how little changes like this can really set off your dog’s behavior. Just something to think about.

Good Luck

On the other hand, there will always be changes. A family dog has to be tolerant of “normal” changes and normal variations in its routine. Is it going to go nuts if you bake a pumkin pie, or get a new car, or have friends over, or there is a thunderstorm? If the dog is unstable or unpredictable when “stuff happens,” I think you need to remove the dog from your household, and soon!

 

[Country_Gal]

On the other hand, there will always be changes. A family dog has to be tolerant of “normal” changes and normal variations in its routine. Is it going to go nuts if you bake a pumkin pie, or get a new car, or have friends over, or there is a thunderstorm? If the dog is unstable or unpredictable when “stuff happens,” I think you need to remove the dog from your household, and soon!

Exactly. This isn’t a human being we’re talking about. It’s a privilege for a dog to be allowed to join a human family. They are supposed to serve us by enhancing our lives in some way. We shouldn’t have to walk on eggshells and cater to them, otherwise they’ll bite our kid.

 

[Kelfa28]

Get rid of the dog at the very least. Putting the dog down might even be a better solution.

I’m apologize if this is blunt…but do you take care of the dog? Meaning, do you walk the dog at least daily? Is someone home to take care of the dog or is everyone out at school or work all day?

My sister and BIL had two dogs before they had their first child. Their house was chaotic. They both worked full time and had a string of different babysitters coming into the house everyday to watch their son.
They rarely walked the dogs.

The dogs barked at absolutely everything and it ended when one of them brutally attacked the other. They got rid of that dog and things have seemed to improve somewhat.

My husband’s sister had a dog that she never walked, kept kenneled most of the day (it was an Akita…not a dog that should be kenneled a majority of the time) and never trained. When it did get loose it tore the house apart.
She was forced to get rid of it because she wouldn’t take care of it.

While I’m a big proponent of getting rid of problem dogs…I have seen some exceptions to the rule.
As an example…the dog I had growing up was well-trained and had a sweet temperament. She was 14 and had never barked or growled at anyone. I brought her to the groomer to get her nails clipped and explained to the groomer that she had arthritis in some of her paws and to please be gentle.
The groomer did not listen and grabbed her paw. My dog yelped and snapped at her. The groomer chastised me and my dog and wanted to use a muzzle. I explained to her, again, that my dog had arthritis and her grabbing the paw like that was probably painful.

I said no thank-you and left immediately.

 

[MJJean]

Ignore the troll.
If you look at his posts, it just serves to incite.

In this case, he is exactly right. I don’t care about the size of the dog, if a dog menaces or attacks a human and the owners aren’t willing to put it down I am absolutely going to call the police and get the bite on record. That way it is documented and if an incident occurs later the authorities can legally do what the owners will not. Many places have a one bite policy, but others have a two or even three bite tolerance. The animal control agency and the courts usually cannot or will not protect public safety by ordering euthanasia without a record of past behavior. Past behavior also reflects on the owner and can affect any legal action against them.

For example, if a dog bites here and the bite is properly reported the police issue a ticket for “harboring a viscous animal” that is accompanied by a fine and a court appearance. Depending on the circumstances of the bite, the court can then order the dog put down or order the owners to take precautions to keep the dog away from the public. A history of bites is seen as chronic irresponsibility of the owner and can result in more serious fines and fees and even a ban from dog ownership for a certain length of time or even permanently.

Call the police. Report each and every bite. Just because a person wasn’t seriously injured this time, you don’t know what could happen if there is a next time or if the dog has a history that would necessitate euthanasia due to the owners failing to either euthanize or contain and control.

On the other hand, there will always be changes. A family dog has to be tolerant of “normal” changes and normal variations in its routine. Is it going to go nuts if you bake a pumkin pie, or get a new car, or have friends over, or there is a thunderstorm? If the dog is unstable or unpredictable when “stuff happens,” I think you need to remove the dog from your household, and soon!

Exactly. A stable dog can roll with changes and should not act aggressively toward it’s family. A nervy unstable dog may act aggressively to changes, but thats the kind of dog I wouldn’t trust and personally wouldn’t own.

Exactly. This isn’t a human being we’re talking about. It’s a privilege for a dog to be allowed to join a human family. They are supposed to serve us by enhancing our lives in some way. We shouldn’t have to walk on eggshells and cater to them, otherwise they’ll bite our kid.

Yup! Dogs and man have an agreement. Dog enriches our lives, we provide dog with shelter, food, vet care, and human love and attention. If a dog is aggressive and untrustworthy or simply so temperamentally unsound that we have to alter our lives around it, the dog needs to move on to the canine afterlife.